Expert insights. Personalized for you.
Sometimes when you’re in the zone as a founder, a case of the twisties can utterly derail progress. The top 5 mistakes founders make right before burning their startup to the ground: Waiting too long to launch. Arriving at a minimum viable product or MVP is torture for founders. MORE
We launched Startup School as an online program in 2017 to support founders actively working on building their companies. On November 9th, we’re also opening Startup School to potential founders who are interested in starting a company in the future. MORE
Just the immediate priorities seem to take up more than one person’s potential working hours—so it’s no surprise that when it comes to something like social media, many founders have trouble making it a priority. The consequences of failing to position a founder’s profile aren’t always obvious—and it’s usually all about missed opportunities. Some founders get more press, get speaking opportunities or have an easier time fundraising thanks to leads that started with social media. MORE
The post Look Outside of Silicon Valley to See How Founders Can Be Successful Post-Covid-19 appeared first on 500 Startups. Founders International Covid-19 entrepreneurs global ecosystems innovation500 Startups kicked off a new series called Innovation Coffee Breaks. MORE
million in a seed funding round led by Global Founders Capital. Funding Fundings & Exits Real Estate Recent Funding Startups Venture Capital Awning global founders capital proptech MORE
Advice for non-technical founders for finding a serious CTO for your startup Finding a co-founder is hard work. Finding a technical co-founder is even harder. Yet, the benefits of having a technical co-founder make it all worthwhile. MORE
We have collected a wide range of freebies, contests, accelerators, online communities, and VCs designed for student tech founders. The Kauffman Foundation found 47% of US tech founders held degrees in STEM while 34% held degrees in business, finance, and accounting. MORE
co-founder). This shows that you’re comfortable at “trial closing” and the type of founder who actively looks for the “obstacles to sale.” It set you miles apart from other founders and quickly demonstrate your sales skills. MORE
Over the past few months, the GAN Community came together to support startup founders who have been deeply impacted by the ongoing COVID-19 crisis. Startup life is hard enough; now, the pandemic has left many founders in an impossible position. MORE
Ai-Ling Wong—founder at The Decorateur. Alex Louey—founder and managing director at Appscore . Andrea Grisdale—founder and CEO at IC Bellagio. David Fastuca—founder at Ambisie and founder at Locomote. Demi Markogiannaki—founder at WeTeachMe. MORE
When GAN Ventures considers whether to invest in a startup, we look for four primary things: Authentic founders: Founders that know their own strengths and weaknesses and aren’t afraid to ask for help. Passionate founders: Founders that joyfully know more about their market than most people would think is normal to know about anything. Authentic founders communicate what’s going on with themselves. MORE
In this program, founders are connected to the CIOs of the top banks, brokerages, and insurance companies in NYC as they work on their products and pitches. And then there is the newest one, the Transit Tech Accelerator , where founders who are building transit companies are connected to the leading transit systems in the NY Metro area while they work on their products and pitches. NYC’s Partnership runs some outstanding accelerator programs. MORE
Donnel Baird is not your “archetypal” startup founder. venture-capital entrepreneurship startup black-founders investor-relationsContinue reading on Entrepreneur's Handbook ». MORE
Kent Gregoire is an Entrepreneurs’ Organization (EO) member and founder of Symphony Advantage, which helps CEOs achieve ongoing success through strategic thinking, advice and planning. Contributed to EO by Kent Gregoire. MORE
Doing so means getting a lot of things right, and one of the most critical is that founders receive the correct support while they’re in-program. Building a community of other founders they can work alongside, who really get what it’s like. MORE
David Teten is founder of Versatile VC and writes periodically at teten.com and @dteten. Hey, founders between gigs: What now? Unfortunately, most founders are not in that position: nine out of 10 startups fail. David Teten. Contributor. Share on Twitter. MORE
mental-health psychology entrepreneurship startup foundersLearn how to cultivate sustainable success by optimizing your mental, physical, and emotional health. Continue reading on Entrepreneur's Handbook ». MORE
Fortunately, that didn’t happen, and he kept on climbing and gaining skills and single-handedly founded his own company, one which has reached Series B and raised $33 million, a significant amount of money for any startup, but particularly for a startup run by a Black founder. MORE
But one thing that really jumped out at us was how bad a job we’ve done at telling founders exactly what they can expect from us. Ideas that start out bad often get better over time as founders learn and adapt. Weak teams can get stronger as co-founders come and go. MORE
Here’s the thing, though: We know that an uneven amount of dollars go to founders in major tech hubs—the Londons and San Franciscos of the world. And, three years into running our fund at GAN Ventures, with over 25 investments (almost exclusively in founders operating in cities like the ones I just mentioned), we’ve seen investment markups on a full third of our portfolio. Most founders in smaller cities are already leaders in their communities. (It’s MORE
Our LPs, many of whom are founders themselves, love our commitment to being first and fast, writing high-conviction pre-seed and seed checks to the best technical founding teams in the Pacific Northwest. We have an enviable track record of helping those founders raise from the best later-stage investors in the world. And with over 200 companies in our combined portfolios, we’ve assembled the most powerful founder support network in the region. MORE
While I got some very kind words on my recent writings , I heard from some founders that didn't feel like they got treated fairly—specifically around feeling patronized or dismissed—and that I wasn't showing enough action to improve on that. It’s easy in my position to forget how much courage it takes to pitch something for any founder—but especially founders for whom stepping out and taking this kind of risk feels like it comes with a bigger downside. MORE
I’m excited to announce the Founder Support Fund. It’s an evergreen microgrant-making fund dedicated to supporting founders’ mental and emotional health and well-being. And many startup founders have been particularly affected by the stress and unknowns of this time. . MORE
So, while it comes as no surprise that 2019 was also a record year for female founders securing these dollars, many would be shocked to learn this funding amounted to a mere 3.4% are female founders who have the true authority to control investment decisions. MORE
million) seed round of funding led by Founders Fund. Contact co-founder and CEO Reuben Selby — a fashion designer who was formerly of William’s founding team, when she started her career — has worked with Nike, Thom Browne and JW Anderson. MORE
In this Dreamit Dose, associates Alana Hill and I, Elliot Levy , offer five things we wish founders knew after screening over 1,000 startups in the last year. That’s something I didn’t realize when I was a founder sitting on the other side of the table. MORE
ACT Tulsa is very intentional about creating an on-ramp to trust with founders who are Black and Brown. Except that ACT Tulsa founders don’t call it “incubation,” they call it a “sprint.” Entrepreneurs and founders have to be strategic in how they navigate that. By Scott Meacham. MORE
VC has been invested over the past decade according to race, gender and educational background makes for grim reading — with all-ethnic teams and female entrepreneurs receiving just a fraction of available funding versus all-white teams and male founders. MORE
In almost every single investment I’ve ever made, I can think of a singular moment in my relationship with a founder that, no matter what came before or what might come after, defined our relationship. Often times, it came in a very vulnerable and down moment for the founder—perhaps they just lost out on a big opportunity, had someone from the team leave, or they’re running low on capital before sales have come around. MORE
As I said in this post , I am generally a “one share one vote proponent”, but I have supported founder control provisions in a few companies where I was or am on the board. The founder had a 10:1 supervoting provision and controlled a majority of the board seats. But I can only imagine that WeWork was running out of cash and needed funds from its existing investors and the founder had to cede all of that to keep the company afloat. MORE
We hear founders say “I did a SAFE and inventors get a 20% discount and a $7m cap”. Sophisticated investors will argue that an uncapped note or SAFE misaligns founder and investor interests. Raising early-stage funding? MORE
David Teten is founder of Versatile VC and writes periodically at teten.com and @dteten. 6 career options for ex-founders seeking their next adventure. We propose that governments should systematically support funding for their diaspora founders, not just founders locally. MORE
500 actively invested in founders who were diverse or were building for diverse customers; we shunned manels by making sure to feature female speakers at our events, so that it wasn’t predominantly men doing the talking. MORE
If founder salaries are supposed to be no more than some set number, how does that work if a founder is a single mom with three kids and a mortgage. For example, if Katrina Lake, the founder of Stitch Fix, went off to start a new company, pretty much any investor would give her a blank check to do it. On the other hand, do you think that same number is the primary motivating factor for the black female founder, weather she, too, went to Harvard and can code or not. MORE
business investing founders startup-life investorsBy chasing tech unicorns, you’re missing out on other invaluable gems Continue reading on Entrepreneur's Handbook ». MORE
Founders are Working for Equity But Equity Can’t Pay the Mortgage Continue reading on Entrepreneur's Handbook ». venture-capital entrepreneurship startup salary income MORE
founders, marketers, investors?—?and As a VC, one of the key things I’m looking for in any new investor is “product-founder fit” e.g. does this founder have an insight or advantage that makes them uniquely suited to successfully build this product and business? MORE
It’s not about being rich, it’s about repeatedly building value What some people think will happen when you become a founder | source I love the book Rich Dad, Poor Dad. Let’s tastefully call this phenomenon: Rich Founder, Poor Founder. Most founders end up owning 5%-20%. MORE
founder Related Topics Dream It
JANUARY 13, 2021
In this Dreamit Dose, associates Alana Hill and I, Elliot Levy , offer five things we wish founders knew after screening over 1,000 startups in the last year. That’s something I didn’t realize when I was a founder sitting on the other side of the table.
GAN
MAY 6, 2020
I’m excited to announce the Founder Support Fund. It’s an evergreen microgrant-making fund dedicated to supporting founders’ mental and emotional health and well-being. And many startup founders have been particularly affected by the stress and unknowns of this time. .
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GAN
JULY 29, 2020
Over the past few months, the GAN Community came together to support startup founders who have been deeply impacted by the ongoing COVID-19 crisis. Startup life is hard enough; now, the pandemic has left many founders in an impossible position.
500
APRIL 28, 2020
500 actively invested in founders who were diverse or were building for diverse customers; we shunned manels by making sure to feature female speakers at our events, so that it wasn’t predominantly men doing the talking.
GAN
FEBRUARY 11, 2020
Doing so means getting a lot of things right, and one of the most critical is that founders receive the correct support while they’re in-program. Building a community of other founders they can work alongside, who really get what it’s like.
This is going to be BIG.
OCTOBER 22, 2018
In almost every single investment I’ve ever made, I can think of a singular moment in my relationship with a founder that, no matter what came before or what might come after, defined our relationship. Often times, it came in a very vulnerable and down moment for the founder—perhaps they just lost out on a big opportunity, had someone from the team leave, or they’re running low on capital before sales have come around.
A VC: Musings of a VC in NYC
SEPTEMBER 26, 2019
As I said in this post , I am generally a “one share one vote proponent”, but I have supported founder control provisions in a few companies where I was or am on the board. The founder had a 10:1 supervoting provision and controlled a majority of the board seats. But I can only imagine that WeWork was running out of cash and needed funds from its existing investors and the founder had to cede all of that to keep the company afloat.
GAN
OCTOBER 9, 2019
Here’s the thing, though: We know that an uneven amount of dollars go to founders in major tech hubs—the Londons and San Franciscos of the world. And, three years into running our fund at GAN Ventures, with over 25 investments (almost exclusively in founders operating in cities like the ones I just mentioned), we’ve seen investment markups on a full third of our portfolio. Most founders in smaller cities are already leaders in their communities. (It’s
Entrepreneurs' Organization
AUGUST 27, 2020
Ai-Ling Wong—founder at The Decorateur. Alex Louey—founder and managing director at Appscore . Andrea Grisdale—founder and CEO at IC Bellagio. David Fastuca—founder at Ambisie and founder at Locomote. Demi Markogiannaki—founder at WeTeachMe.
Entrepreneurs' Organization
JANUARY 25, 2021
Kent Gregoire is an Entrepreneurs’ Organization (EO) member and founder of Symphony Advantage, which helps CEOs achieve ongoing success through strategic thinking, advice and planning. Contributed to EO by Kent Gregoire.
Dream It
JULY 12, 2021
We hear founders say “I did a SAFE and inventors get a 20% discount and a $7m cap”. Sophisticated investors will argue that an uncapped note or SAFE misaligns founder and investor interests. Raising early-stage funding?
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Entrepreneur's Handbook
NOVEMBER 17, 2020
It’s not about being rich, it’s about repeatedly building value What some people think will happen when you become a founder | source I love the book Rich Dad, Poor Dad. Let’s tastefully call this phenomenon: Rich Founder, Poor Founder. Most founders end up owning 5%-20%.
StartupNation
SEPTEMBER 21, 2021
Sometimes when you’re in the zone as a founder, a case of the twisties can utterly derail progress. The top 5 mistakes founders make right before burning their startup to the ground: Waiting too long to launch. Arriving at a minimum viable product or MVP is torture for founders.
Entrepreneur's Handbook
APRIL 24, 2021
Advice for non-technical founders for finding a serious CTO for your startup Finding a co-founder is hard work. Finding a technical co-founder is even harder. Yet, the benefits of having a technical co-founder make it all worthwhile.
This is going to be BIG.
JUNE 9, 2020
While I got some very kind words on my recent writings , I heard from some founders that didn't feel like they got treated fairly—specifically around feeling patronized or dismissed—and that I wasn't showing enough action to improve on that. It’s easy in my position to forget how much courage it takes to pitch something for any founder—but especially founders for whom stepping out and taking this kind of risk feels like it comes with a bigger downside.
GAN
MAY 22, 2019
When GAN Ventures considers whether to invest in a startup, we look for four primary things: Authentic founders: Founders that know their own strengths and weaknesses and aren’t afraid to ask for help. Passionate founders: Founders that joyfully know more about their market than most people would think is normal to know about anything. Authentic founders communicate what’s going on with themselves.
David Teten VC
JULY 27, 2021
We have collected a wide range of freebies, contests, accelerators, online communities, and VCs designed for student tech founders. The Kauffman Foundation found 47% of US tech founders held degrees in STEM while 34% held degrees in business, finance, and accounting.
Entrepreneur's Handbook
FEBRUARY 17, 2021
mental-health psychology entrepreneurship startup foundersLearn how to cultivate sustainable success by optimizing your mental, physical, and emotional health. Continue reading on Entrepreneur's Handbook ».
Dream It
FEBRUARY 5, 2021
co-founder). This shows that you’re comfortable at “trial closing” and the type of founder who actively looks for the “obstacles to sale.” It set you miles apart from other founders and quickly demonstrate your sales skills.
TechCrunch
NOVEMBER 2, 2020
VC has been invested over the past decade according to race, gender and educational background makes for grim reading — with all-ethnic teams and female entrepreneurs receiving just a fraction of available funding versus all-white teams and male founders.
500
MAY 8, 2020
The post Look Outside of Silicon Valley to See How Founders Can Be Successful Post-Covid-19 appeared first on 500 Startups. Founders International Covid-19 entrepreneurs global ecosystems innovation500 Startups kicked off a new series called Innovation Coffee Breaks.
TechCrunch
JUNE 7, 2021
David Teten is founder of Versatile VC and writes periodically at teten.com and @dteten. Hey, founders between gigs: What now? Unfortunately, most founders are not in that position: nine out of 10 startups fail. David Teten. Contributor. Share on Twitter.
Entrepreneur's Handbook
JULY 24, 2021
business investing founders startup-life investorsBy chasing tech unicorns, you’re missing out on other invaluable gems Continue reading on Entrepreneur's Handbook ».
Innovation 2 Enterprise
AUGUST 15, 2021
ACT Tulsa is very intentional about creating an on-ramp to trust with founders who are Black and Brown. Except that ACT Tulsa founders don’t call it “incubation,” they call it a “sprint.” Entrepreneurs and founders have to be strategic in how they navigate that. By Scott Meacham.
This is going to be BIG.
JULY 8, 2019
Just the immediate priorities seem to take up more than one person’s potential working hours—so it’s no surprise that when it comes to something like social media, many founders have trouble making it a priority. The consequences of failing to position a founder’s profile aren’t always obvious—and it’s usually all about missed opportunities. Some founders get more press, get speaking opportunities or have an easier time fundraising thanks to leads that started with social media.
Entrepreneur's Handbook
JULY 12, 2021
Founders are Working for Equity But Equity Can’t Pay the Mortgage Continue reading on Entrepreneur's Handbook ». venture-capital entrepreneurship startup salary income
A VC: Musings of a VC in NYC
NOVEMBER 4, 2019
In this program, founders are connected to the CIOs of the top banks, brokerages, and insurance companies in NYC as they work on their products and pitches. And then there is the newest one, the Transit Tech Accelerator , where founders who are building transit companies are connected to the leading transit systems in the NY Metro area while they work on their products and pitches. NYC’s Partnership runs some outstanding accelerator programs.
TechCrunch
JULY 12, 2021
Fortunately, that didn’t happen, and he kept on climbing and gaining skills and single-handedly founded his own company, one which has reached Series B and raised $33 million, a significant amount of money for any startup, but particularly for a startup run by a Black founder.
Y Combinator
OCTOBER 28, 2020
We launched Startup School as an online program in 2017 to support founders actively working on building their companies. On November 9th, we’re also opening Startup School to potential founders who are interested in starting a company in the future.
This is going to be BIG.
FEBRUARY 24, 2020
If founder salaries are supposed to be no more than some set number, how does that work if a founder is a single mom with three kids and a mortgage. For example, if Katrina Lake, the founder of Stitch Fix, went off to start a new company, pretty much any investor would give her a blank check to do it. On the other hand, do you think that same number is the primary motivating factor for the black female founder, weather she, too, went to Harvard and can code or not.
Entrepreneur's Handbook
JULY 19, 2021
Donnel Baird is not your “archetypal” startup founder. venture-capital entrepreneurship startup black-founders investor-relationsContinue reading on Entrepreneur's Handbook ».
TechCrunch
SEPTEMBER 23, 2021
million in a seed funding round led by Global Founders Capital. Funding Fundings & Exits Real Estate Recent Funding Startups Venture Capital Awning global founders capital proptech
Founders Coop
MAY 18, 2020
But one thing that really jumped out at us was how bad a job we’ve done at telling founders exactly what they can expect from us. Ideas that start out bad often get better over time as founders learn and adapt. Weak teams can get stronger as co-founders come and go.
StartupNation
JULY 28, 2021
So, while it comes as no surprise that 2019 was also a record year for female founders securing these dollars, many would be shocked to learn this funding amounted to a mere 3.4% are female founders who have the true authority to control investment decisions.
Founders Coop
MARCH 1, 2021
Our LPs, many of whom are founders themselves, love our commitment to being first and fast, writing high-conviction pre-seed and seed checks to the best technical founding teams in the Pacific Northwest. We have an enviable track record of helping those founders raise from the best later-stage investors in the world. And with over 200 companies in our combined portfolios, we’ve assembled the most powerful founder support network in the region.
TechCrunch
AUGUST 12, 2021
million) seed round of funding led by Founders Fund. Contact co-founder and CEO Reuben Selby — a fashion designer who was formerly of William’s founding team, when she started her career — has worked with Nike, Thom Browne and JW Anderson.
TechCrunch
AUGUST 17, 2021
David Teten is founder of Versatile VC and writes periodically at teten.com and @dteten. 6 career options for ex-founders seeking their next adventure. We propose that governments should systematically support funding for their diaspora founders, not just founders locally.
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